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Ochsner Academics Announces Selection of New Clinical School Society Heads
RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 3, 2020
Dr. Ronald G. Amedee, Dean of Medical Education for Ochsner Health, Professor and Head of School for the University of Queensland-Ochsner Clinical School, has announced the selection of two new Society Heads within the clinical school.
Dr. Kathy Jo (KJ) Carstarphen will lead the Curtis Tyrone, MD Society and Dr. Leise Knoepp will lead the Alton Ochsner, MD Society effective January 1, 2021. “Both of these individuals have distinguished track records of substantial contributions to medical student education and advancement within the Ochsner Clinical School,” said Dr. Amedee.
All UQ Ochsner Clinical School medical students are assigned to one of five Medical Societies. These five Societies are named the Edgar Burns Society, the Guy Caldwell Society, the Francis LeJeune Society, the Alton Ochsner Society, and the Curtis Tyrone Society each named after one of the physician founders of the original Ochsner Clinic in 1942, all of whom made important contributions to research, clinical care, and education. The Societies provide structure for longitudinal educational advising and coaching for students from both faculty and peers. The Societies are also social units organized to promote a sense of community within the larger Ochsner Clinical School/University of Queensland (UQ/OCS) cohort. Each medical society is led by a faculty member, the Society Head, who is chosen for expertise in advising and coaching.
Dr. Carstarphen received her medical doctorate from the University of Alabama School of Medicine before completing a Master’s in Public Health from the University of Alabama School of Public Health. She next completed a residency in internal medicine from Tulane University School of Medicine. She created the Med Vantage Clinic which is a valuable part of Ochsner Health that manages socially and medically complex patients using evidence-based population health principles. She holds the academic title of Senior Lecturer in the UQOCS and was the recent recipient of the medical student research Mentor of the Year during the 2020 Ochsner Research Day.
Dr. Knoepp received her medical doctorate from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-Shreveport and prior to completing her doctorate she obtained a Master’s in Public Health from Emory University. She completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and a subsequent fellowship in Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery from Johns Hopkins University Medical Center. She holds the academic title of Senior Lecturer in the UQOCS. She has previously received a Teaching Excellence Award from our clinical school students and has traveled as part of this award to Brisbane, Australia to liaise with her academic/clinical counterparts.
